Bill Reynolds: R.I. mourns loss of special friend

Old friend Kevin Murray died last week of cancer at the too young age of 54.

He was a husband, a son, a brother, a father of five children, a friend to many, and a one-time lacrosse star at both La Salle and at Long Island University, and a coach.

He coached Hendricken to five state lacrosse titles in the last 15 years.

In short, he lived a rich, full life, the reason why the Perry-McStay Funeral Home in East Providence was jam-packed on Wednesday night.

It was an amazing tribute to Murray, and to old Rhode Island, too, the Rhode Island of neighborhoods, local sports, and ties that can come from that, ties that can last a lifetime.

So farewell, old friend.

R.I.P.

• Another winter, another great UConn women's basketball team, and the beat goes on, now 150 straight wins against unranked opponents.

• The Pats' Malcolm Butler, benched for the Super Bowl, played 98 percent of the snaps during the regular season.

• Does anyone still care about the Kardashians, or has that train moved on down the track?

• This from Forbes: the Cowboys are the NFL's most valuable franchise, worth $4.8 billion, and the Patriots are second, worth $3.7 billion.

• The Associated Press reported that an estimated 103.4 million people watched the Super Bowl, down an estimated 7 percent from last year.

• QUIZ OF THE WEEK: I have the most receptions in NFL history. Who am I? (Answer near the bottom of the column.)

• LINE OF THE WEEK comes from the Pats' Malcolm Butler, in the Boston Globe, on not getting into the Super Bowl game: "It is what it is. I don't know what it was.''

• LINE OF THE WEEK II comes from Tom Brady: "No one is going feel sorry for us.''

• LINE OF THE WEEK III comes from Karen Guregian, who covers the Pats for the Boston Herald: "There seems to be a sense of Patriots fatigue between the ranks.''

• LINE OF THE WEEK IV comes from Justin Timberlake on Tom Brady: "He's got great hair.''

• LINE OF THE WEEK V is this all-time classic from Ronald Reagan: "The nine most terrifying words in the English language are: "I'm from the government, and I'm here to help.''

• Speaking of Brady, he and Barry Bonds went to the same high school, Junípero Serra High School in San Mateo, Calif.

• Kristaps Porzingis is out for at least the next 10 months due to an ACL tear, and the sound you hear is the Knicks season checking out.

• There's no truth to the rumor that Gina Raimondo has a moving van on speed dial.

• Or that the Independent Man is telling anyone who will listen that next winter he is out of here.

• Gronk as an action film star? That's the new rumor.

• Bovada has the Pats at 5-1 to win next year's Super Bowl. The Steelers at 10-1, followed by the Vikings, Packers and Eagles at 12-1.

• Longtime Pats' defensive coordinator Matt Patricia cut his hair and trimmed much of his trademark beard for his introduction as the new coach of the Lions.

• This from the Entertainment Software Association: Sixty-five percent of U.S. households have at least one member who plays three or more hours of video games a week. Add it all up, and TV viewership is down, even for the NFL.

• The ESPN documentary on "The Two Bills'' is excellent.

• But if you have to ask who the two Bills are, Bunky, it just might not be for you.

• Did you see where Randy Moss was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility?

• Add the expression "slut-shaming'' to the culture.

• Memo to Major League Baseball: please do more to speed up the game.

• Justin Timberlake's appeal eludes me. Maybe in my next life.

• This past week wasn't Josh McDaniels' finest moment.

• A fond farewell to Tim Britton, who covered the Red Sox here for seven years, and is off to New York to cover the Mets for a website called "The Athletic.''

• QUIZ ANSWER: Jerry Rice, with 1,549.

• Isaiah Thomas never really got along with LeBron in Cleveland, so guess what? He's gone.

• Did Belichick outsmart himself by not playing Butler?

• Just when you think you've got it all figured out, St. John's beats Villanova.

• Backup quarterback Nick Foles? He beat the Pats? Really?

• Or, as he said afterwards, "The big thing is don't be afraid to fail. ... I wouldn't be up here if I hadn't failed a million times.''

• Sounds like the General Assembly to me, but we keep waiting, right?

Never miss a story

Choose the plan that's right for you.
Digital access or digital and print delivery.